Success Story: To make the dreams seen with open eyes come true, courage and hard work are required. One has to walk on long paths, and many times one has to taste failures during the journey. But every failure is an inspiration to take the next step with more strength. At the end of this journey sits success, which has a unique taste. The story of a girl named Sara Blakely is an inspiration for those who want to taste success. When she was 27 years old, she started her own business with just 5,000 dollars and by the time she turned 41, she had built a billion-dollar company. Her name was included in the list of rich people.

Sara Blakely is the founder of a brand called 'Spanx'. Spanx is an American company, which is famous for making shapewear. This company became famous for shaping briefs and leggings. Shapewear means underwear that keeps the body in a shape. Sara Blakely started Spanx in 1998. Born in 1971, Sara Blakely was only 27 years old at that time. Perhaps even she had never thought that her company would be a hit in the very first year.

In the very first year (in 1999) 'Spanx' sold 4 million dollars. After that, when America's famous host and TV producer Oprah Winfrey included Spanx in her wardrobe, it created a stir. The company's sales grew very fast. Even the world's largest asset management company Blackstone could not ignore Spanx. In 2021, Blackstone offered $1.2 billion (about Rs 9,000 crore) to buy the majority stake in Spanx. Sara Blakely had a very great offer, which she could not say no to.

Sara Blakely closed the deal and gave a wonderful gift to all her employees. She gave them $10,000 for the trip and first-class air tickets so that they could also enjoy. That is why Sara Blakely is also known as a businesswoman with a heart of gold.

What failures came in the way of success?
Sara was born in Clearwater, Florida. Her father was a lawyer and her mother was an artist. Since childhood, Sara had the passion to do something different. On Halloween, she built a haunted house for the neighborhood children and earned money by selling tickets. But this childhood passion was going to teach her something big while going through the storms of failure.

Her father taught her a unique attitude towards failure. At the dinner table, he would ask Sara and her brother about their failures and praise their efforts. In Sara's words, "Failure for me became a meaning of not trying, not the result." This thinking brought revolutionary changes in her life.

Career Beginnings and Challenges
After graduating from Florida State University, Sarah once thought of becoming a lawyer. But she had to choose another path after failing in the Law School Admission Test. Then she thought of becoming 'Goofy' in Disney World, but this dream too could not be fulfilled due to her height.

Then Sara went back to Clearwater and got a job in an imaging and document management company. This was a company that would give jobs to anyone who was still breathing. The company managers gave her the job of selling fax machines door to door in the Florida heat. This job was very difficult, but she could learn a lot from it. While selling fax machines, she learned how to accept people's no and gradually move forward and achieve success. She kept selling fax machines for about 7 years despite facing difficulties. Later the imaging company promoted her. After the promotion, she did not have to sell fax machines door to door.

How did the idea of ​​Spanx come about?
The biggest idea of ​​Sara Blakely's life came when she wore white pants for a party. She cut the bottom part of her pantyhose (stockings) and wore them so that they fit better. This small trick became a big opportunity for her. She decided that she would make a product for women that would help them shape their bodies better. Shapewear, which would keep the body in shape when worn.

In 1998, Sarah moved to Atlanta with her savings of $5,000. During the day, she worked in an imaging company, and at night she researched hosiery patents and fabrics. She approached several companies with her idea, but initially most manufacturing companies rejected her idea outright. But she had full faith in her concept and this time she was in, no mood to give up.

Sarah Blakely herself prepared the patent and the legal structure of the company. She did not take any funding from anyone for this and started the company by manufacturing at her own level. The company was named 'Spanx'. Spanx had a great start and the company achieved continuous growth. The products made by Sarah started becoming very popular.